What is the minimum dimension for an ohel to bring impurity and intervene against it?
Halacha 1: An ohel must be at least one handbreadth by one handbreadth and one handbreadth high to both convey impurity to what is under it and intervene against impurity for what is above it.
Question 2
A person stands between a corpse and some vessels, covering all of them with their body. Do the vessels become impure?
Halacha 4: A human being (adam) is in the category of items that bring impurity but do not intervene against it — an impure human ohel conveys impurity to everything under it but cannot block impurity from reaching things above it.
Question 3
A ship is floating on water over a corpse. Do items on the other side of the ship's deck become impure?
Halacha 5: A floating ship does not create a lasting ohel — it neither brings impurity to what is beneath it, nor intervenes against it. However, if tethered to something stable, it becomes an ohel-bringer.
Question 4
Mint plants that grow year-round are positioned over a corpse and some vessels. Do the vessels become impure?
Halacha 3: Perennial vegetables (those that survive both summer and winter, like mint) are treated like trees. They form valid ohalim that both bring impurity and can intervene against it.
Question 5
An unstable branch projection (sichachot) hangs over a corpse. Can it intervene against impurity by Torah law?
Halacha 2: Unstable ohel structures (like branches that would fall) bring impurity Rabbinically but do not intervene against it. Only sturdy structures that can bear average ceiling weight bring and intervene by Torah law.